It may be fun to sow one's wild oats with little thought to consequences of an unwanted pregnancy, but sometimes males have simply allowed the issue of birth control to rest upon the shoulders of women a good part of the time. For dependable men who have decided to share the responsibility of contraception or take it wholly on themselves for a wide variety of reasons, there have only been three options that protect against pregnancy. Until now that is.

Male Birth Control Methods Today

Male birth control is something that exists, but only in a very basic form as the most common forms of birth control are designed for women. Hopefully that will change with future scientific research, such as options now being tested in Germany and other parts of Europe, but until then men will have limited options for birth control for men.

Male birth control until recently has only been available in the form of either condoms, utilizing the withdrawal method, or a surgical vasectomy which offers a more permanent and rarely reversible form of contraception. The condom has been the most favored method due to the obvious reasons of being more dependable and most effective against V.D.. Also it is much more dependable when weighing the risk of not withdrawing in time and certainly a lot less drastic than the thought of a vasectomy.

For older men that are fathers and wish to eliminate the risk of getting their wife, lover or one night stand pregnant and having another child that they might not be ready for, a vasectomy offers an ideal solution. Basically the procedure involves slicing away the vasa deferentia which then prevents the sperm from traveling to the seminal stream. Recovery is usually within just a few days although there will still be active sperm for some time which means that other contraception is still required until he is happily shooting blanks!

The most popular form of male contraception is still the condom. It is widely used by both young and old alike because it is portable, reliable and easy to use. Of course the negative side of the condom is that it reduces sensation during intercourse, but most males don't mind. Especially if not using one means the possibility of impregnating their partner... or worse still, no sex at all! Anyway condoms can be a great deal of fun, as they come in various colors and textures guaranteed to titillate and tease!

Another form of birth control men use is the withdrawal method, but this has its share of problems of which failure is the number one concern! Sure he meant to pull out... but things can always happen!

Birth control methods used by men that will probably be used in the not too distant future will include the male birth control pill which will revolutionize the world of intimacy for men and contraception. Men will finally have a definite say when it comes to not wanting to get someone pregnant. There has always been an element of risk for men as they have had to completely trust that they will not fall victim to the many women that ensnare men through deliberately getting pregnant. Men do ultimately pay the price for such deceit through ongoing child support for a child that they had no idea was planned by the woman all along. Sure he should have used a condom, but he trusted that she was using contraception. With this and other new forms of birth control options for men this risk will be eliminated. The bottom line is that both sexes should take full responsibility for their sexual and reproductive activities.